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# Async.js
Async is a utility module which provides straight-forward, powerful functions
for working with asynchronous JavaScript. Although originally designed for
use with [node.js](http://nodejs.org), it can also be used directly in the
browser. Also supports [component](https://github.com/component/component).
Async provides around 20 functions that include the usual 'functional'
suspects (map, reduce, filter, each…) as well as some common patterns
for asynchronous control flow (parallel, series, waterfall…). All these
functions assume you follow the node.js convention of providing a single
callback as the last argument of your async function.
## Quick Examples
```javascript
async.map(['file1','file2','file3'], fs.stat, function(err, results){
// results is now an array of stats for each file
});
async.filter(['file1','file2','file3'], fs.exists, function(results){
// results now equals an array of the existing files
});
async.parallel([
function(){ ... },
function(){ ... }
], callback);
async.series([
function(){ ... },
function(){ ... }
]);
```
There are many more functions available so take a look at the docs below for a
full list. This module aims to be comprehensive, so if you feel anything is
missing please create a GitHub issue for it.
## Common Pitfalls
### Binding a context to an iterator
This section is really about bind, not about async. If you are wondering how to
make async execute your iterators in a given context, or are confused as to why
a method of another library isn't working as an iterator, study this example:
```js
// Here is a simple object with an (unnecessarily roundabout) squaring method
var AsyncSquaringLibrary = {
squareExponent: 2,
square: function(number, callback){
var result = Math.pow(number, this.squareExponent);
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, result);
}, 200);
}
};
async.map([1, 2, 3], AsyncSquaringLibrary.square, function(err, result){
// result is [NaN, NaN, NaN]
// This fails because the `this.squareExponent` expression in the square
// function is not evaluated in the context of AsyncSquaringLibrary, and is
// therefore undefined.
});
async.map([1, 2, 3], AsyncSquaringLibrary.square.bind(AsyncSquaringLibrary), function(err, result){
// result is [1, 4, 9]
// With the help of bind we can attach a context to the iterator before
// passing it to async. Now the square function will be executed in its
// 'home' AsyncSquaringLibrary context and the value of `this.squareExponent`
// will be as expected.
});
```
## Download
The source is available for download from
[GitHub](http://github.com/caolan/async).
Alternatively, you can install using Node Package Manager (npm):
npm install async
__Development:__ [async.js](https://github.com/caolan/async/raw/master/lib/async.js) - 29.6kb Uncompressed
## In the Browser
So far it's been tested in IE6, IE7, IE8, FF3.6 and Chrome 5. Usage:
```html
<script type="text/javascript" src="async.js"></script>
<script type="text/javascript">
async.map(data, asyncProcess, function(err, results){
alert(results);
});
</script>
```
## Documentation
### Collections
* [each](#each)
* [map](#map)
* [filter](#filter)
* [reject](#reject)
* [reduce](#reduce)
* [detect](#detect)
* [sortBy](#sortBy)
* [some](#some)
* [every](#every)
* [concat](#concat)
### Control Flow
* [series](#series)
* [parallel](#parallel)
* [whilst](#whilst)
* [doWhilst](#doWhilst)
* [until](#until)
* [doUntil](#doUntil)
* [forever](#forever)
* [waterfall](#waterfall)
* [compose](#compose)
* [applyEach](#applyEach)
* [queue](#queue)
* [cargo](#cargo)
* [auto](#auto)
* [iterator](#iterator)
* [apply](#apply)
* [nextTick](#nextTick)
* [times](#times)
* [timesSeries](#timesSeries)
### Utils
* [memoize](#memoize)
* [unmemoize](#unmemoize)
* [log](#log)
* [dir](#dir)
* [noConflict](#noConflict)
## Collections
<a name="forEach" />
<a name="each" />
### each(arr, iterator, callback)
Applies an iterator function to each item in an array, in parallel.
The iterator is called with an item from the list and a callback for when it
has finished. If the iterator passes an error to this callback, the main
callback for the each function is immediately called with the error.
Note, that since this function applies the iterator to each item in parallel
there is no guarantee that the iterator functions will complete in order.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* iterator(item, callback) - A function to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(err) which must be called once it has
completed. If no error has occured, the callback should be run without
arguments or with an explicit null argument.
* callback(err) - A callback which is called after all the iterator functions
have finished, or an error has occurred.
__Example__
```js
// assuming openFiles is an array of file names and saveFile is a function
// to save the modified contents of that file:
async.each(openFiles, saveFile, function(err){
// if any of the saves produced an error, err would equal that error
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="forEachSeries" />
<a name="eachSeries" />
### eachSeries(arr, iterator, callback)
The same as each only the iterator is applied to each item in the array in
series. The next iterator is only called once the current one has completed
processing. This means the iterator functions will complete in order.
---------------------------------------
<a name="forEachLimit" />
<a name="eachLimit" />
### eachLimit(arr, limit, iterator, callback)
The same as each only no more than "limit" iterators will be simultaneously
running at any time.
Note that the items are not processed in batches, so there is no guarantee that
the first "limit" iterator functions will complete before any others are
started.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* limit - The maximum number of iterators to run at any time.
* iterator(item, callback) - A function to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(err) which must be called once it has
completed. If no error has occured, the callback should be run without
arguments or with an explicit null argument.
* callback(err) - A callback which is called after all the iterator functions
have finished, or an error has occurred.
__Example__
```js
// Assume documents is an array of JSON objects and requestApi is a
// function that interacts with a rate-limited REST api.
async.eachLimit(documents, 20, requestApi, function(err){
// if any of the saves produced an error, err would equal that error
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="map" />
### map(arr, iterator, callback)
Produces a new array of values by mapping each value in the given array through
the iterator function. The iterator is called with an item from the array and a
callback for when it has finished processing. The callback takes 2 arguments,
an error and the transformed item from the array. If the iterator passes an
error to this callback, the main callback for the map function is immediately
called with the error.
Note, that since this function applies the iterator to each item in parallel
there is no guarantee that the iterator functions will complete in order, however
the results array will be in the same order as the original array.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* iterator(item, callback) - A function to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(err, transformed) which must be called once
it has completed with an error (which can be null) and a transformed item.
* callback(err, results) - A callback which is called after all the iterator
functions have finished, or an error has occurred. Results is an array of the
transformed items from the original array.
__Example__
```js
async.map(['file1','file2','file3'], fs.stat, function(err, results){
// results is now an array of stats for each file
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="mapSeries" />
### mapSeries(arr, iterator, callback)
The same as map only the iterator is applied to each item in the array in
series. The next iterator is only called once the current one has completed
processing. The results array will be in the same order as the original.
---------------------------------------
<a name="mapLimit" />
### mapLimit(arr, limit, iterator, callback)
The same as map only no more than "limit" iterators will be simultaneously
running at any time.
Note that the items are not processed in batches, so there is no guarantee that
the first "limit" iterator functions will complete before any others are
started.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* limit - The maximum number of iterators to run at any time.
* iterator(item, callback) - A function to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(err, transformed) which must be called once
it has completed with an error (which can be null) and a transformed item.
* callback(err, results) - A callback which is called after all the iterator
functions have finished, or an error has occurred. Results is an array of the
transformed items from the original array.
__Example__
```js
async.map(['file1','file2','file3'], 1, fs.stat, function(err, results){
// results is now an array of stats for each file
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="filter" />
### filter(arr, iterator, callback)
__Alias:__ select
Returns a new array of all the values which pass an async truth test.
_The callback for each iterator call only accepts a single argument of true or
false, it does not accept an error argument first!_ This is in-line with the
way node libraries work with truth tests like fs.exists. This operation is
performed in parallel, but the results array will be in the same order as the
original.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* iterator(item, callback) - A truth test to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(truthValue) which must be called with a
boolean argument once it has completed.
* callback(results) - A callback which is called after all the iterator
functions have finished.
__Example__
```js
async.filter(['file1','file2','file3'], fs.exists, function(results){
// results now equals an array of the existing files
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="filterSeries" />
### filterSeries(arr, iterator, callback)
__alias:__ selectSeries
The same as filter only the iterator is applied to each item in the array in
series. The next iterator is only called once the current one has completed
processing. The results array will be in the same order as the original.
---------------------------------------
<a name="reject" />
### reject(arr, iterator, callback)
The opposite of filter. Removes values that pass an async truth test.
---------------------------------------
<a name="rejectSeries" />
### rejectSeries(arr, iterator, callback)
The same as reject, only the iterator is applied to each item in the array
in series.
---------------------------------------
<a name="reduce" />
### reduce(arr, memo, iterator, callback)
__aliases:__ inject, foldl
Reduces a list of values into a single value using an async iterator to return
each successive step. Memo is the initial state of the reduction. This
function only operates in series. For performance reasons, it may make sense to
split a call to this function into a parallel map, then use the normal
Array.prototype.reduce on the results. This function is for situations where
each step in the reduction needs to be async, if you can get the data before
reducing it then it's probably a good idea to do so.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* memo - The initial state of the reduction.
* iterator(memo, item, callback) - A function applied to each item in the
array to produce the next step in the reduction. The iterator is passed a
callback(err, reduction) which accepts an optional error as its first
argument, and the state of the reduction as the second. If an error is
passed to the callback, the reduction is stopped and the main callback is
immediately called with the error.
* callback(err, result) - A callback which is called after all the iterator
functions have finished. Result is the reduced value.
__Example__
```js
async.reduce([1,2,3], 0, function(memo, item, callback){
// pointless async:
process.nextTick(function(){
callback(null, memo + item)
});
}, function(err, result){
// result is now equal to the last value of memo, which is 6
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="reduceRight" />
### reduceRight(arr, memo, iterator, callback)
__Alias:__ foldr
Same as reduce, only operates on the items in the array in reverse order.
---------------------------------------
<a name="detect" />
### detect(arr, iterator, callback)
Returns the first value in a list that passes an async truth test. The
iterator is applied in parallel, meaning the first iterator to return true will
fire the detect callback with that result. That means the result might not be
the first item in the original array (in terms of order) that passes the test.
If order within the original array is important then look at detectSeries.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* iterator(item, callback) - A truth test to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(truthValue) which must be called with a
boolean argument once it has completed.
* callback(result) - A callback which is called as soon as any iterator returns
true, or after all the iterator functions have finished. Result will be
the first item in the array that passes the truth test (iterator) or the
value undefined if none passed.
__Example__
```js
async.detect(['file1','file2','file3'], fs.exists, function(result){
// result now equals the first file in the list that exists
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="detectSeries" />
### detectSeries(arr, iterator, callback)
The same as detect, only the iterator is applied to each item in the array
in series. This means the result is always the first in the original array (in
terms of array order) that passes the truth test.
---------------------------------------
<a name="sortBy" />
### sortBy(arr, iterator, callback)
Sorts a list by the results of running each value through an async iterator.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* iterator(item, callback) - A function to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(err, sortValue) which must be called once it
has completed with an error (which can be null) and a value to use as the sort
criteria.
* callback(err, results) - A callback which is called after all the iterator
functions have finished, or an error has occurred. Results is the items from
the original array sorted by the values returned by the iterator calls.
__Example__
```js
async.sortBy(['file1','file2','file3'], function(file, callback){
fs.stat(file, function(err, stats){
callback(err, stats.mtime);
});
}, function(err, results){
// results is now the original array of files sorted by
// modified date
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="some" />
### some(arr, iterator, callback)
__Alias:__ any
Returns true if at least one element in the array satisfies an async test.
_The callback for each iterator call only accepts a single argument of true or
false, it does not accept an error argument first!_ This is in-line with the
way node libraries work with truth tests like fs.exists. Once any iterator
call returns true, the main callback is immediately called.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* iterator(item, callback) - A truth test to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(truthValue) which must be called with a
boolean argument once it has completed.
* callback(result) - A callback which is called as soon as any iterator returns
true, or after all the iterator functions have finished. Result will be
either true or false depending on the values of the async tests.
__Example__
```js
async.some(['file1','file2','file3'], fs.exists, function(result){
// if result is true then at least one of the files exists
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="every" />
### every(arr, iterator, callback)
__Alias:__ all
Returns true if every element in the array satisfies an async test.
_The callback for each iterator call only accepts a single argument of true or
false, it does not accept an error argument first!_ This is in-line with the
way node libraries work with truth tests like fs.exists.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over.
* iterator(item, callback) - A truth test to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(truthValue) which must be called with a
boolean argument once it has completed.
* callback(result) - A callback which is called after all the iterator
functions have finished. Result will be either true or false depending on
the values of the async tests.
__Example__
```js
async.every(['file1','file2','file3'], fs.exists, function(result){
// if result is true then every file exists
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="concat" />
### concat(arr, iterator, callback)
Applies an iterator to each item in a list, concatenating the results. Returns the
concatenated list. The iterators are called in parallel, and the results are
concatenated as they return. There is no guarantee that the results array will
be returned in the original order of the arguments passed to the iterator function.
__Arguments__
* arr - An array to iterate over
* iterator(item, callback) - A function to apply to each item in the array.
The iterator is passed a callback(err, results) which must be called once it
has completed with an error (which can be null) and an array of results.
* callback(err, results) - A callback which is called after all the iterator
functions have finished, or an error has occurred. Results is an array containing
the concatenated results of the iterator function.
__Example__
```js
async.concat(['dir1','dir2','dir3'], fs.readdir, function(err, files){
// files is now a list of filenames that exist in the 3 directories
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="concatSeries" />
### concatSeries(arr, iterator, callback)
Same as async.concat, but executes in series instead of parallel.
## Control Flow
<a name="series" />
### series(tasks, [callback])
Run an array of functions in series, each one running once the previous
function has completed. If any functions in the series pass an error to its
callback, no more functions are run and the callback for the series is
immediately called with the value of the error. Once the tasks have completed,
the results are passed to the final callback as an array.
It is also possible to use an object instead of an array. Each property will be
run as a function and the results will be passed to the final callback as an object
instead of an array. This can be a more readable way of handling results from
async.series.
__Arguments__
* tasks - An array or object containing functions to run, each function is passed
a callback(err, result) it must call on completion with an error (which can
be null) and an optional result value.
* callback(err, results) - An optional callback to run once all the functions
have completed. This function gets a results array (or object) containing all
the result arguments passed to the task callbacks.
__Example__
```js
async.series([
function(callback){
// do some stuff ...
callback(null, 'one');
},
function(callback){
// do some more stuff ...
callback(null, 'two');
}
],
// optional callback
function(err, results){
// results is now equal to ['one', 'two']
});
// an example using an object instead of an array
async.series({
one: function(callback){
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, 1);
}, 200);
},
two: function(callback){
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, 2);
}, 100);
}
},
function(err, results) {
// results is now equal to: {one: 1, two: 2}
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="parallel" />
### parallel(tasks, [callback])
Run an array of functions in parallel, without waiting until the previous
function has completed. If any of the functions pass an error to its
callback, the main callback is immediately called with the value of the error.
Once the tasks have completed, the results are passed to the final callback as an
array.
It is also possible to use an object instead of an array. Each property will be
run as a function and the results will be passed to the final callback as an object
instead of an array. This can be a more readable way of handling results from
async.parallel.
__Arguments__
* tasks - An array or object containing functions to run, each function is passed
a callback(err, result) it must call on completion with an error (which can
be null) and an optional result value.
* callback(err, results) - An optional callback to run once all the functions
have completed. This function gets a results array (or object) containing all
the result arguments passed to the task callbacks.
__Example__
```js
async.parallel([
function(callback){
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, 'one');
}, 200);
},
function(callback){
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, 'two');
}, 100);
}
],
// optional callback
function(err, results){
// the results array will equal ['one','two'] even though
// the second function had a shorter timeout.
});
// an example using an object instead of an array
async.parallel({
one: function(callback){
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, 1);
}, 200);
},
two: function(callback){
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, 2);
}, 100);
}
},
function(err, results) {
// results is now equals to: {one: 1, two: 2}
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="parallel" />
### parallelLimit(tasks, limit, [callback])
The same as parallel only the tasks are executed in parallel with a maximum of "limit"
tasks executing at any time.
Note that the tasks are not executed in batches, so there is no guarantee that
the first "limit" tasks will complete before any others are started.
__Arguments__
* tasks - An array or object containing functions to run, each function is passed
a callback(err, result) it must call on completion with an error (which can
be null) and an optional result value.
* limit - The maximum number of tasks to run at any time.
* callback(err, results) - An optional callback to run once all the functions
have completed. This function gets a results array (or object) containing all
the result arguments passed to the task callbacks.
---------------------------------------
<a name="whilst" />
### whilst(test, fn, callback)
Repeatedly call fn, while test returns true. Calls the callback when stopped,
or an error occurs.
__Arguments__
* test() - synchronous truth test to perform before each execution of fn.
* fn(callback) - A function to call each time the test passes. The function is
passed a callback(err) which must be called once it has completed with an
optional error argument.
* callback(err) - A callback which is called after the test fails and repeated
execution of fn has stopped.
__Example__
```js
var count = 0;
async.whilst(
function () { return count < 5; },
function (callback) {
count++;
setTimeout(callback, 1000);
},
function (err) {
// 5 seconds have passed
}
);
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="doWhilst" />
### doWhilst(fn, test, callback)
The post check version of whilst. To reflect the difference in the order of operations `test` and `fn` arguments are switched. `doWhilst` is to `whilst` as `do while` is to `while` in plain JavaScript.
---------------------------------------
<a name="until" />
### until(test, fn, callback)
Repeatedly call fn, until test returns true. Calls the callback when stopped,
or an error occurs.
The inverse of async.whilst.
---------------------------------------
<a name="doUntil" />
### doUntil(fn, test, callback)
Like doWhilst except the test is inverted. Note the argument ordering differs from `until`.
---------------------------------------
<a name="forever" />
### forever(fn, callback)
Calls the asynchronous function 'fn' repeatedly, in series, indefinitely.
If an error is passed to fn's callback then 'callback' is called with the
error, otherwise it will never be called.
---------------------------------------
<a name="waterfall" />
### waterfall(tasks, [callback])
Runs an array of functions in series, each passing their results to the next in
the array. However, if any of the functions pass an error to the callback, the
next function is not executed and the main callback is immediately called with
the error.
__Arguments__
* tasks - An array of functions to run, each function is passed a
callback(err, result1, result2, ...) it must call on completion. The first
argument is an error (which can be null) and any further arguments will be
passed as arguments in order to the next task.
* callback(err, [results]) - An optional callback to run once all the functions
have completed. This will be passed the results of the last task's callback.
__Example__
```js
async.waterfall([
function(callback){
callback(null, 'one', 'two');
},
function(arg1, arg2, callback){
callback(null, 'three');
},
function(arg1, callback){
// arg1 now equals 'three'
callback(null, 'done');
}
], function (err, result) {
// result now equals 'done'
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="compose" />
### compose(fn1, fn2...)
Creates a function which is a composition of the passed asynchronous
functions. Each function consumes the return value of the function that
follows. Composing functions f(), g() and h() would produce the result of
f(g(h())), only this version uses callbacks to obtain the return values.
Each function is executed with the `this` binding of the composed function.
__Arguments__
* functions... - the asynchronous functions to compose
__Example__
```js
function add1(n, callback) {
setTimeout(function () {
callback(null, n + 1);
}, 10);
}
function mul3(n, callback) {
setTimeout(function () {
callback(null, n * 3);
}, 10);
}
var add1mul3 = async.compose(mul3, add1);
add1mul3(4, function (err, result) {
// result now equals 15
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="applyEach" />
### applyEach(fns, args..., callback)
Applies the provided arguments to each function in the array, calling the
callback after all functions have completed. If you only provide the first
argument then it will return a function which lets you pass in the
arguments as if it were a single function call.
__Arguments__
* fns - the asynchronous functions to all call with the same arguments
* args... - any number of separate arguments to pass to the function
* callback - the final argument should be the callback, called when all
functions have completed processing
__Example__
```js
async.applyEach([enableSearch, updateSchema], 'bucket', callback);
// partial application example:
async.each(
buckets,
async.applyEach([enableSearch, updateSchema]),
callback
);
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="applyEachSeries" />
### applyEachSeries(arr, iterator, callback)
The same as applyEach only the functions are applied in series.
---------------------------------------
<a name="queue" />
### queue(worker, concurrency)
Creates a queue object with the specified concurrency. Tasks added to the
queue will be processed in parallel (up to the concurrency limit). If all
workers are in progress, the task is queued until one is available. Once
a worker has completed a task, the task's callback is called.
__Arguments__
* worker(task, callback) - An asynchronous function for processing a queued
task, which must call its callback(err) argument when finished, with an
optional error as an argument.
* concurrency - An integer for determining how many worker functions should be
run in parallel.
__Queue objects__
The queue object returned by this function has the following properties and
methods:
* length() - a function returning the number of items waiting to be processed.
* concurrency - an integer for determining how many worker functions should be
run in parallel. This property can be changed after a queue is created to
alter the concurrency on-the-fly.
* push(task, [callback]) - add a new task to the queue, the callback is called
once the worker has finished processing the task.
instead of a single task, an array of tasks can be submitted. the respective callback is used for every task in the list.
* unshift(task, [callback]) - add a new task to the front of the queue.
* saturated - a callback that is called when the queue length hits the concurrency and further tasks will be queued
* empty - a callback that is called when the last item from the queue is given to a worker
* drain - a callback that is called when the last item from the queue has returned from the worker
__Example__
```js
// create a queue object with concurrency 2
var q = async.queue(function (task, callback) {
console.log('hello ' + task.name);
callback();
}, 2);
// assign a callback
q.drain = function() {
console.log('all items have been processed');
}
// add some items to the queue
q.push({name: 'foo'}, function (err) {
console.log('finished processing foo');
});
q.push({name: 'bar'}, function (err) {
console.log('finished processing bar');
});
// add some items to the queue (batch-wise)
q.push([{name: 'baz'},{name: 'bay'},{name: 'bax'}], function (err) {
console.log('finished processing bar');
});
// add some items to the front of the queue
q.unshift({name: 'bar'}, function (err) {
console.log('finished processing bar');
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="cargo" />
### cargo(worker, [payload])
Creates a cargo object with the specified payload. Tasks added to the
cargo will be processed altogether (up to the payload limit). If the
worker is in progress, the task is queued until it is available. Once
the worker has completed some tasks, each callback of those tasks is called.
__Arguments__
* worker(tasks, callback) - An asynchronous function for processing an array of
queued tasks, which must call its callback(err) argument when finished, with
an optional error as an argument.
* payload - An optional integer for determining how many tasks should be
processed per round; if omitted, the default is unlimited.
__Cargo objects__
The cargo object returned by this function has the following properties and
methods:
* length() - a function returning the number of items waiting to be processed.
* payload - an integer for determining how many tasks should be
process per round. This property can be changed after a cargo is created to
alter the payload on-the-fly.
* push(task, [callback]) - add a new task to the queue, the callback is called
once the worker has finished processing the task.
instead of a single task, an array of tasks can be submitted. the respective callback is used for every task in the list.
* saturated - a callback that is called when the queue length hits the concurrency and further tasks will be queued
* empty - a callback that is called when the last item from the queue is given to a worker
* drain - a callback that is called when the last item from the queue has returned from the worker
__Example__
```js
// create a cargo object with payload 2
var cargo = async.cargo(function (tasks, callback) {
for(var i=0; i<tasks.length; i++){
console.log('hello ' + tasks[i].name);
}
callback();
}, 2);
// add some items
cargo.push({name: 'foo'}, function (err) {
console.log('finished processing foo');
});
cargo.push({name: 'bar'}, function (err) {
console.log('finished processing bar');
});
cargo.push({name: 'baz'}, function (err) {
console.log('finished processing baz');
});
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="auto" />
### auto(tasks, [callback])
Determines the best order for running functions based on their requirements.
Each function can optionally depend on other functions being completed first,
and each function is run as soon as its requirements are satisfied. If any of
the functions pass an error to their callback, that function will not complete
(so any other functions depending on it will not run) and the main callback
will be called immediately with the error. Functions also receive an object
containing the results of functions which have completed so far.
Note, all functions are called with a results object as a second argument,
so it is unsafe to pass functions in the tasks object which cannot handle the
extra argument. For example, this snippet of code:
```js
async.auto({
readData: async.apply(fs.readFile, 'data.txt', 'utf-8');
}, callback);
```
will have the effect of calling readFile with the results object as the last
argument, which will fail:
```js
fs.readFile('data.txt', 'utf-8', cb, {});
```
Instead, wrap the call to readFile in a function which does not forward the
results object:
```js
async.auto({
readData: function(cb, results){
fs.readFile('data.txt', 'utf-8', cb);
}
}, callback);
```
__Arguments__
* tasks - An object literal containing named functions or an array of
requirements, with the function itself the last item in the array. The key
used for each function or array is used when specifying requirements. The
function receives two arguments: (1) a callback(err, result) which must be
called when finished, passing an error (which can be null) and the result of
the function's execution, and (2) a results object, containing the results of
the previously executed functions.
* callback(err, results) - An optional callback which is called when all the
tasks have been completed. The callback will receive an error as an argument
if any tasks pass an error to their callback. Results will always be passed
but if an error occurred, no other tasks will be performed, and the results
object will only contain partial results.
__Example__
```js
async.auto({
get_data: function(callback){
// async code to get some data
},
make_folder: function(callback){
// async code to create a directory to store a file in
// this is run at the same time as getting the data
},
write_file: ['get_data', 'make_folder', function(callback){
// once there is some data and the directory exists,
// write the data to a file in the directory
callback(null, filename);
}],
email_link: ['write_file', function(callback, results){
// once the file is written let's email a link to it...
// results.write_file contains the filename returned by write_file.
}]
});
```
This is a fairly trivial example, but to do this using the basic parallel and
series functions would look like this:
```js
async.parallel([
function(callback){
// async code to get some data
},
function(callback){
// async code to create a directory to store a file in
// this is run at the same time as getting the data
}
],
function(err, results){
async.series([
function(callback){
// once there is some data and the directory exists,
// write the data to a file in the directory
},
function(callback){
// once the file is written let's email a link to it...
}
]);
});
```
For a complicated series of async tasks using the auto function makes adding
new tasks much easier and makes the code more readable.
---------------------------------------
<a name="iterator" />
### iterator(tasks)
Creates an iterator function which calls the next function in the array,
returning a continuation to call the next one after that. It's also possible to
'peek' the next iterator by doing iterator.next().
This function is used internally by the async module but can be useful when
you want to manually control the flow of functions in series.
__Arguments__
* tasks - An array of functions to run.
__Example__
```js
var iterator = async.iterator([
function(){ sys.p('one'); },
function(){ sys.p('two'); },
function(){ sys.p('three'); }
]);
node> var iterator2 = iterator();
'one'
node> var iterator3 = iterator2();
'two'
node> iterator3();
'three'
node> var nextfn = iterator2.next();
node> nextfn();
'three'
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="apply" />
### apply(function, arguments..)
Creates a continuation function with some arguments already applied, a useful
shorthand when combined with other control flow functions. Any arguments
passed to the returned function are added to the arguments originally passed
to apply.
__Arguments__
* function - The function you want to eventually apply all arguments to.
* arguments... - Any number of arguments to automatically apply when the
continuation is called.
__Example__
```js
// using apply
async.parallel([
async.apply(fs.writeFile, 'testfile1', 'test1'),
async.apply(fs.writeFile, 'testfile2', 'test2'),
]);
// the same process without using apply
async.parallel([
function(callback){
fs.writeFile('testfile1', 'test1', callback);
},
function(callback){
fs.writeFile('testfile2', 'test2', callback);
}
]);
```
It's possible to pass any number of additional arguments when calling the
continuation:
```js
node> var fn = async.apply(sys.puts, 'one');
node> fn('two', 'three');
one
two
three
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="nextTick" />
### nextTick(callback)
Calls the callback on a later loop around the event loop. In node.js this just
calls process.nextTick, in the browser it falls back to setImmediate(callback)
if available, otherwise setTimeout(callback, 0), which means other higher priority
events may precede the execution of the callback.
This is used internally for browser-compatibility purposes.
__Arguments__
* callback - The function to call on a later loop around the event loop.
__Example__
```js
var call_order = [];
async.nextTick(function(){
call_order.push('two');
// call_order now equals ['one','two']
});
call_order.push('one')
```
<a name="times" />
### times(n, callback)
Calls the callback n times and accumulates results in the same manner
you would use with async.map.
__Arguments__
* n - The number of times to run the function.
* callback - The function to call n times.
__Example__
```js
// Pretend this is some complicated async factory
var createUser = function(id, callback) {
callback(null, {
id: 'user' + id
})
}
// generate 5 users
async.times(5, function(n, next){
createUser(n, function(err, user) {
next(err, user)
})
}, function(err, users) {
// we should now have 5 users
});
```
<a name="timesSeries" />
### timesSeries(n, callback)
The same as times only the iterator is applied to each item in the array in
series. The next iterator is only called once the current one has completed
processing. The results array will be in the same order as the original.
## Utils
<a name="memoize" />
### memoize(fn, [hasher])
Caches the results of an async function. When creating a hash to store function
results against, the callback is omitted from the hash and an optional hash
function can be used.
The cache of results is exposed as the `memo` property of the function returned
by `memoize`.
__Arguments__
* fn - the function you to proxy and cache results from.
* hasher - an optional function for generating a custom hash for storing
results, it has all the arguments applied to it apart from the callback, and
must be synchronous.
__Example__
```js
var slow_fn = function (name, callback) {
// do something
callback(null, result);
};
var fn = async.memoize(slow_fn);
// fn can now be used as if it were slow_fn
fn('some name', function () {
// callback
});
```
<a name="unmemoize" />
### unmemoize(fn)
Undoes a memoized function, reverting it to the original, unmemoized
form. Comes handy in tests.
__Arguments__
* fn - the memoized function
<a name="log" />
### log(function, arguments)
Logs the result of an async function to the console. Only works in node.js or
in browsers that support console.log and console.error (such as FF and Chrome).
If multiple arguments are returned from the async function, console.log is
called on each argument in order.
__Arguments__
* function - The function you want to eventually apply all arguments to.
* arguments... - Any number of arguments to apply to the function.
__Example__
```js
var hello = function(name, callback){
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, 'hello ' + name);
}, 1000);
};
```
```js
node> async.log(hello, 'world');
'hello world'
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="dir" />
### dir(function, arguments)
Logs the result of an async function to the console using console.dir to
display the properties of the resulting object. Only works in node.js or
in browsers that support console.dir and console.error (such as FF and Chrome).
If multiple arguments are returned from the async function, console.dir is
called on each argument in order.
__Arguments__
* function - The function you want to eventually apply all arguments to.
* arguments... - Any number of arguments to apply to the function.
__Example__
```js
var hello = function(name, callback){
setTimeout(function(){
callback(null, {hello: name});
}, 1000);
};
```
```js
node> async.dir(hello, 'world');
{hello: 'world'}
```
---------------------------------------
<a name="noConflict" />
### noConflict()
Changes the value of async back to its original value, returning a reference to the
async object.